


THE DAY THE SKY TURNED BLACK

by fallen_angel_7890



Category: Krashlyn - Fandom, Women's Soccer RPF
Genre: Angst, F/F, Football | Soccer, Sleepy Cuddles, Smut, US Women's Soccer National Team, USWNT, krashlyn - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-31
Updated: 2016-09-08
Packaged: 2018-08-12 06:34:35
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 17,523
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7924303
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fallen_angel_7890/pseuds/fallen_angel_7890
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ali and Ashlyn were friends since the beginning of their soccer career. They always had that strong connection and they trusted each other deeply. But what if someone or something tried to separate them? Could they overcome everything put in front of them?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. HOUSE OF GLASS

**Author's Note:**

> So this is my first USWNT fanfic and it's Krashlyn fanfic ofc :D  
> Feel free to comment and for the record, I am not a native English speaker so, sorry for the mistakes that I have and will make in the future chapters.
> 
> Enjoy!

„Ash, are you coming? We are going to be so late! “Ali yelled trying to get Ashlyn’s attention. „I am almost done; just let me pack my stuff. “It was 9 a.m. and they had practice. Ali always loved morning practice; she really was a morning person. On the other hand, Ashlyn hated getting up early, but they had to go, it was the last practice before Olympic qualifiers.

„Am I driving or do you want to? “ Ali asked throwing their stuff on the back seat of a car.

„Go ahead, I don't feel like driving. “ Ashlyn said looking through the window, trying to catch some fresh air.

„Is everything okay? Are you feeling okay? “Ali gave her full attention to her best friend sitting right beside her.

„I am okay. Just a little dizzy, I didn't get enough sleep, that's all. “Ash gave Ali what seemed to be a reassuring smile even though it didn't look very reassuring. „I will be okay.“

 

The drive to their practice was very quiet which was really odd. Whenever Ali was driving, Ash would call a shotgun even though no one else was going with them. She would play Taylor Swift throughout the whole trip and wouldn’t stop teasing Ali about whatever. But today was different. Today she was quiet, didn’t even try to play the music and didn’t look at Ali once.

 

“Okay, spill it, what’s going on?”Ali asked, pulling over and turning her body to Ash. Ashlyn tried to ignore the question and stated the obvious. “Ali, we are going to be late, could you please continue driving?” This time she looked at Ali, her eyes were swollen because she didn’t sleep much last night.”I promise you, if there was something serious, you would know about it.”

“I will always worry about you. You are my best friend.”Ali tried to comfort Ash, but this only made it worse.

“Yeah, that is the problem...” Ash whispered to herself while she turned away from Ali.

“What did you say?” Ali narrowed her brows and tried to face Ash.

“Nothing, it doesn’t matter.” Ash shrugged her off.

“Suit yourself. If you want to deal with this alone, who am I to push you into anything different?” Ali was feeling a bit angry because Ash would always confide into her. This time it was either something about her family or her girlfriend, because she never talks about either of them with Ali. She started the engine and hit the road.

They finally arrived and practice was about to start.

As soon as they walked onto the stadium Lucy was the first one to walk up to them. She was Ashlyn’s girlfriend and the only person that Ali couldn’t really read.

“Did you sleep well baby?” Lucy threw herself on Ash as soon as she saw her, without even saying hi.”Thanks for bringing her on time; I know she can be grumpy in the morning.” Lucy looked at Ali and winked.

“Yeah, whatever.” Ali walked past them and took the ball to do drills. Ash knew she didn’t like Lucy, but didn’t know why. Either way, she didn’t like the way Lucy was treating Ali.

“Could you be a little nicer next time?” Ash removed Lucy’s hand off of her and headed to catch Ali before the real practice started.

“Hey, I’m so sorry about her. I don’t know why she’s like that.” Ashlyn tried to start a conversation.

“I know why. She thinks that I am trying to take you away from her because you spend more time with me than with her. Which for the record, I am not trying. I know how much she m-“  Before she could finish that sentence, Ashlyn hugs her tightly and kisses her forehead.

“I know you wouldn’t do that Ali..” Ashlyn pulls away and stares into Ali’s eyes. “If she makes you happy, there is nothing I won’t do make sure that you two stay together.” Ali looks into Ashlyn’s eyes and can already feel tears streaming down her face.

_Fuck. Did you really have to cry right now? Calm the fuck down Ali, she is not yours. Deal with it._

“I’m..I’m sorry.” Ali quickly wipes the tears away and distances herself from Ash.

But as always, Ash won’t let it go. She cares too much about Ali to forget about such things.

“Hey princess, talk to me.” Ash cups Ali’s face and pulls her head up so she can stare into her eyes, hoping that she could read what’s wrong.

She always calls her princess, that’s kind of their thing. Ali doesn’t have any other nickname for Ashlyn except for Ash, but she doesn’t mind the one Ashlyn has come up with.

“It’s nothing really, I just.. I don’t want to come between you two. That’s all.” Ali looks away from Ash, but she is soon looking into those beautiful eyes once again. _She is so pretty, like an angel.._

Ali shakes her thoughts and pays her attention to Ash.

“You know that you can’t stand between the two of us. If I had to choose between you two I would choose you. I would always choose you.” Before Ali could even process the words that Ash told her, she finds herself in a tight embrace and closes her eyes.

“You are wearing that perfume that I bought for you.” Ali states and looks at Ashlyn.

A big smile appears on Ashlyn’s face and she nods happily.

“I love that perfume. Not only because you bought it, but because it’s Taylor Swift’s perfume.” Ashlyn teases and tries to duck before Ali pushes her a little too hard and she falls to the ground but not before she pulls Ali with her and Ali lands on top of Ashlyn.

“You really love punching me, don’t you?” Ashlyn asks pulling Ali into a tight hug.

Lucy was watching them from afar and even though she knew they were always this close, she felt angry. She didn’t want Ali so close and the more she thought about it, the more she felt angry, which soon turned to rage. She asked their coach if she could head home because she wasn’t feeling well and Jill allowed.

Their practice started and Ash was really focused on the drill, she didn’t even hear Ali calling her. Alex approached her. “Yo Ash, Ali is calling you.” She jogged away and Ash looked up searching for Ali.

“What’s wrong?” Ash jogged to Ali and inspected her from top to bottom.

“It’s not me, I’m fine, don’t worry. I just wanted to tell you that I talked to the coach and she said that Lucy left because she wasn’t feeling well. I thought you should know.” Ash could see sadness in Ali’s eyes. “Thanks for telling me, I will go to the locker room, maybe she’s still there.”

“Oh, okay, I need to change my pre-wrap, so I will be there in a minute. Unless you want me to wait until-“Ash interrupted her. “It’s okay, you don’t have to wait.” Ali nodded and she and Ashlyn slowly started walking to the locker room.

On their way, Ali was left behind because Syd wanted to talk to her. “Yo, what’s up with Lucy? She didn’t even do the laps; she was starring at you two all the time.” That got Ali thinking. _Was Lucy faking it? Why would she do that, I mean Ashlyn was her girlfriend, not mine._

 

Ashlyn was approaching the locker room and she could hear someone inside.

“Lucy, is that you?” Ashlyn opened the locker room door and saw Lucy walking up and down.

At that point Ali already reached the locker room but she heard some voices and didn’t want to come in just yet.

As soon as Lucy saw Ash, she smirked in disgust.

“Are you eye-fucking all of your friends like that?” She asked throwing her stuff into the training bag.

“Eye-..Wha..What are you talking about?!” Ash approached her and crossed her arms looking at Lucy confused.

“Oh come on, just admit it and stop lying to me and to yourself. You were all over that bitch!” Lucy punched her bag and smashed her water bottle against the floor.

“First of all, she is not a bitch, to you she is Ali Krieger and second, I wasn’t all over her, she had some problems and I was there comforting her!” Ash yelled and narrowed her brows.

Sooner than later conversation started to heat up. They were both yelling at each other until Lucy crossed the line.

“Doesn’t she have anyone else to talk to?! It is always you! She can’t live one day without you! Do you ever think why she chose you?! Because you have money Ashlyn! Your family has money!”

As soon as she heard that, Ali unintentionally hit the door while trying to cover her mouth so the sob wouldn’t come out. She felt tears streaming down her face and before she could even turn around she saw Ashlyn opening the door.

“Ali, I’m so sor-“Ali ran away crying before Ash could stop her and the only thing on Lucy’s face was pure success.

“I hope that you are proud of yourself! Look what you did.” Ashlyn eyed Lucy and ran after Ali.

After solid 15 minutes of trying to find her, she found Ali who was leaning against the goal. The practice was finished long ago and the only thing there was Ali, she and the reflectors that were illuminating Ali’s tears and the wet grass that she was sitting on while looking at the dark blue sky.

“Princess, I’m so sorry, I didn’t think that you were listening...” Ashlyn carefully approached her.

“Don’t call me that.” Ali shrugged her off and looked the other way. “Would it make any difference if I wasn’t there?”

“Ali...” Ash sat beside her, crossing her legs. “I didn’t mean it like that. I know that everything that Lucy said was wrong.” She cupped Ali’s cheek and turned her head to look at her hazel eyes.”Please don’t cry. I can’t stand that..”Ash wiped Ali’s tears and kissed her forehead.

“I’m sorry, but I can’t listen to what she said. Maybe we should take some time apart.” Ashlyn’s worst nightmare just came to life.

_Take some time apart? No. No no no no. I can’t do time apart._

“No, Ali, please..” Ashlyn tried to stop her but she already make her mind.

“See you soon Ash.” Ali cupped her face and kissed her just below the right corner of the lips.

She left Ash alone on the stadium. Her whole world just crashed down on her. Without Ali she doesn’t know how to live. Ali is her anchor, her life path.. Before she knew, her morning alarm went off. She jumped in fear only to find herself in the same spot that Ali left her in. She didn’t go home last night.

All of a sudden her phone went off. The screen read Engen.

“Yo Ash, where u at? I just stopped by your house and rang for like 20 minutes. Are you seriously still sleeping?” Whit asked turning off her car engine.

“No, I’m..I’m at the stadium.” Ash didn’t want to talk really. She was just being polite because Whitney was her friend since birth.

“Bro what are u doing there already? The practice starts in half an hour and you are usually always late.”Whit stated a little bit shocked.”Did you sleep there or something?” She tried to joke but she didn’t know how true that was..

“Funny. Yeah, well.. Se you in a bit.” Ash hung up and tried to stretch. She placed her hand on the back of her neck where it really hurt.”I should probably head to the locker room and take a shower before they come.”

Ash took a shower and got dressed. As soon as she closed her locker she saw Ali’s bag on the bench beside her.

_Oh boy..This is going to be hell.._

Approaching the exit she meets Lucy who is humming.

“Morning baby!” Lucy tries to kiss Ashlyn but instead Ash shrugs her off and narrows her brows.

“Don’t baby me! You don’t really think that I am going to forget about yesterday?” Ash walked past Lucy and she followed. “Jesus Christ, I just said what no one else would. The truth!” Ashlyn turned around raising a finger to Lucy’s face. “Don’t you dare talk about her ever again!”

“You see? This is the problem! Whenever I say anything about her, you jump to her rescue as her hero! Why do you always do that?!” Lucy yelled and in that moment it all came out.

“You know what?! I am tired of you treating her like some kind of trash! I am tired of you not respecting her! She is my best friend and I will do anything for her, you can’t change that!” Ash clenched her jaw and looked at Lucy with rage in her eyes.

“And what am I to you?! Huh?! What am I?!” Lucy didn’t really get the answer she expected.

“Nothing anymore.” Before they realized, the whole team was listening to their fight. Ash turned to face Whit and she nodded, reassuring Ash that she did the right thing.

Lucy stood there in shock, her eyes never leaving Ashlyn. It was over. It was all over because of her.. that fucking Krieger.

 

The practice passed really quickly considering the tension between Ash and Lucy. Whit approached Ali while they were stretching.

“Have you talked to Ash today?” Whit knew that something was going on. Over the years she became really good in reading people’s faces. Especially Ashlyn’s. Ali looked up at Whit and smiled weakly.

“No, why?” She didn’t sleep last night either. When she got home the feeling of emptiness hit her and she cried for hours before passing out.

“Well I called her this morning because she wasn’t opening the door and she told me that she’s already at the stadium which was odd because Ash is never early.” Whit looked at Ali seeing that look in her eyes. The same look that Ashlyn has when something happens to Ali.

“Look Ali, she really loves you. I don’t know what happened but I can only tell you that she has been here all night and you are the only thing she needs to live. Without you she is lost. Even I can’t replace that hole in her heart..Please, try to forgive her. She is really trying here. I guess Lucy will never know now, will she? Oh god, did you see the look on her face when Ash broke up with her? That was so dope haha..” Before Ali could ask her anything, Whit ran away to do suicides.

_She broke up whit Lucy? Was it my fault? Oh god I hope she doesn’t blame me for it.. I should probably go and apologize for overreacting.._

Ali found her in the locker room, sitting on the floor hugging her knees. She didn’t know if it is the smart idea to approach her, but she took the risk anyway.

“Ash, I’ve heard what happened.” Ash stood up the second she hears Ali’s voice.

“Yeah..I..I ended it with her.” Ali ran to her crying and embraced her into a tight hug.”Was it because of me? Please tell me that it wasn’t because of me!” Ali was panicking at this point but Ash was quick to calm her down. “Oh princess, it wasn’t your fault, don’t ever think that! She was disrespecting me by talking all those stuff about you and I couldn’t bear to listen to it anymore so I-“ Ash was surprised by a sudden situation. Ali kissed her. It was a relatively short kiss, but it was still a kiss.

“Oh my god, Ash, I’m..” Ali covered her mouth and started to walk backwards.”Hey, It’s okay, Ali I..”

Ali left the stadium. Ashlyn tried to search for her but she was nowhere to be found. So instead of wasting her time searching for her, she texted her.

“ **Ash:** Ali, please call me when you get this, I need to talk to you. Don’t run away now. I finally got you back.”

Ali’s phone rang and she wiped away the tears. She saw who sent it and immediately felt sick to her stomach. “Did I just ruin everything we had? I can’t open it..I can’t” Instead, she crawled to her bed and cried for hours..

In the meantime Ashlyn was worried sick. She was walking up and down Whit’s apartment trying to remember any place beside her home that she might be.

“Whit, I’m terrified. What if something happened to her? I can’t.. I can’t live with that!” Whit walked up to Ash and hugged her.

“Why did she run anyway? Did you not accept her apology?” Whit asked.

“I did, I accepted, but she..” Ash stopped and she knew that Whit understood what happened. “She kissed you?” Whit looked in Ash’s eyes.”Yeah..Yeah, she kissed me.”


	2. LIKE A DROP IN THE OCEAN

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ashlyn couldn't bare not knowing if Ali was okay. Not everything went according to the plan.Will they finally realize how important their friendship is? Will it be too late?

Ali sat in the park playing nervously with her phone. This place was her safe haven. This is Ashlyn’s and hers spot.

Everything was quiet. The sky was filled with bright stars and cold summer air caressed Ali’s cheeks as she shuffled her position a little bit. Soon she felt wetness on her cheeks. It was raining.

“Great! Just perfect!” She threw her hands in the air expressing her annoyance.”Just what I needed.” She picked her sports bag up and made her way to the car. Slowly she opened the door and took one more glance at the peaceful park that was once filled with laughter. Ashlyn’s laughter. “I miss her so much.” Ali was beating herself up over what she did.”I really fucked up this time.” She got in the car and drove home without noticing that she dropped her phone on the way to the car.

“Whit, I can’t just sit and do nothing! I need to find her. I called and she is not answering.” Ashlyn quickly took her keys and ran out of the house. She ran to the parking lot and entered her Mercedes. As soon as she turned the engine on, radio started. It was Whispers in the dark by Skillet. She didn’t mind turning it off. She really liked that song.

“God, I hope nothing has happened to her..” Ash nervously bit her nails and increased the grip on the steering wheel. The first place she could think of was the park. She quickly dialed Ali’s number and hoped that she would answer. Still nothing. It was ringing but no one was picking up..

“Fuck Ali, come on!” Ash became terrified and every second that she was in that car was a second more that she wasn’t with Ali.

She finally arrived and didn’t even bother closing the door or shutting the engine off. She tried to call for her but no answer.

“I’ll try the phone one more time. Please answer…” Ash quickly called Ali but a familiar ringtone was somewhere near her. Was Ali here the whole time? Or even worse, what if something happened to her?

“Ali, baby, are you here?” Ash followed the ringtone carefully, already prepared for a fight if someone attacked her.

The disappointment on her face was clear when she found the phone on the ground 2 ft from the bench. She quickly picked it up and turned the screen on. It was definitely Ali’s phone which Ash knew by their selfie on the background. She was thinking of the worst possible outcome. Something happened to Ali. She noticed that it was getting way too late and decided to check Ali’s house once more.

The drive to Ali’s house was torture for Ashlyn. The rain wasn’t helping either with the way it was pouring. The only thing that needed to happen was that one moment in which Ash wasn’t looking at the road. She lost the control over her car and swerved to the right, hitting the tree that was nearby but the crash was so strong that her car rolled multiple times and landed on the roof.

Ash woke up feeling a warm blood pouring down her face, her head was hurting and she barely made it out of the car. Seeing what happened, she took her phone and called Whit.

“Yo Ash, where u at? It’s really late and we have practice in the morning so you better get yo ass back to your house because I am sleeping there tonight.” Whit was switching through TV channels trying to catch that one popcorn that fell to her lap.

“Whit, I fucked it up bad..” Ash somehow managed to say but Whit knew something was really wrong.

“Ash, what happened?! Are you okay?!” Whit stood up and started getting dressed.”Where are you?”

“I crashed the Mercedes. I think I’ll be okay, just, could you pick me up?” Ash wiped the blood of her face and pulled the piece of broken glass from her palm.”I was driving to Ali’s house-“

“I’m on my way!” Whit jumped to her car and drove to Ashlyn. As soon as she arrived her heart almost stopped and she froze in place. There was broken glass everywhere and Ash was covered in blood even though she tried to wipe it off.

“Jesus Christ Ash, are you okay?!” Whit cupped her face and inspected her from top to bottom.”We need to take you to the hospital!” Ash protested and looked back at her crashed car.”I will be fine, just.. Call the police and tell them what happened and please drive me home.” Ash took her time to walk back to Whit’s car as she was talking to the police. A couple of minutes later they arrived and took Ash’s statement. They were free to go.

“Are you sure you don’t want to go to the hospital?” Whit placed her hand over Ashlyn’s as she focused on the road.

“No, I’m fine, don’t worry. I guess you are driving to practice tomorrow.” Ash glanced to Whit and smiled weakly.

As soon as they got to Ash’s house, she took a shower and inspected her body. There were a couple of bruises on her ribs that hurt a little and some more on her shoulder. 

_I just hope no one will notice tomorrow. Yeah Ashlyn, no one will notice a big cut on your fucking head. Great job! On top of all that you didn’t even…Oh God, Ali! I still don’t know where is she. I hope she didn’t hear about the accident.._

Ashlyn’s thoughts were interrupted by Whit’s knocking.

“Ash, you okay in there?” She patiently waited for the response. “Yeah, coming right out.” Ash got dressed and met Whit in the hall.

“If you need anything, I will be sleeping on the couch. I will wake you up at 7 and if you won’t feel good that will be more than enough time to drive you to the hospital since coach added a few more practice sessions.” Whit hugged Ash and their ways parted.

The next morning Ash woke up at 6:44. The sun was shining through the curtains and the smell of freshly cut grass filled her room. She opened her eyes and looked around remembering last night.

“Oh god, not the Mercedes..” She got up and felt like crap, but she was determined to finish today’s practice. She knew that it was the only way she could see Ali.

Whitney was preparing breakfast for both of them by the time Ash got down the stairs.

“How are you feeling?” Whit placed the dish in front of Ash’s seat and wiped her hands.

“Okay, just a little bruised, but nothing serious.” Ash took the pancake and sat down looking at the plate.

“You sure tough guy? You seem kind of down.” Ash sighed and put her pancake down.

“You think I’m not tough?” Ash joked as she approached Whit ready to tickle her.

“I take it back! Ash, don’t, please!” Whit backed away and started to run to protect herself.”I see you are okay. Go eat and we will get going.”

Ash ate her breakfast and packed her sports bag. She walked downstairs and put their bags in Whit’s car. They arrived to the stadium a couple of minutes later which felt like hours to Ashlyn. She just wanted to see Ali, she wanted to make sure that Ali was okay.

They entered the locker room and their teammates were discussing defenses and passing the ball when doing counterattack. Ashlyn looked for Ali and saw her putting on her jersey.

_She looks so beautiful. And she is okay.._

Ash’s thoughts were interrupted when she realized that Ali was looking right at her, concern all over her face. Ash quickly looked down and walked away. Whit had a locker next to Ali’s and Ash’s was on the other side. She opened her locker and gave a reassuring nod to Ash. Ali was confused and when she saw Ash’s head cut, she lost it.

“Whit, what happened? Why does she have that cut? Is she okay?” Ali bombed Whit with questions.

“Calm down, she’s okay. I guess. Look, this is not my thing to tell so if you want to know, talk to her. I’m not the one who was out all night looking for you.” Whit raised her brows and shut her locker door. She picked up her bottle and walked out.

Ali didn’t hesitate for a second and went up to Ash. She was trying to put on her shoes but was having a hard time considering all the bruises on her ribs and shoulder.

“Ash, what happened? Are you okay?” Ali carefully placed her hand on Ash’s shoulder and Ash jumped back feeling the pain.

“Yeah, everything is okay. Just had a little accident.” She didn’t look at her; instead she tried to tie her shoes which led to her throwing her shirt after she didn’t succeed.”Fuck! I’m sorry..”

“Ash, talk to me. Please..I’m sorry that I ran like that and Whit told me that you went out and searched for me yesterday. I’m sorry about everything!” Ali kneeled in front of Ash who was holding her shoulder. “Do you need help with that?” Ali asked pointing at Ash’s shoes.

“If you don’t mind..” Ash sat patiently as Ali tied her shoes. As she was done, she placed her hands on the bench, preventing Ash to run. “What happened Ashlyn?” Ali knew the situation was serious because Ash wouldn’t tell her what happened and she knew that Ash won’t talk about it because it involved Ali.

“Did I do something wrong beside act like a total child?” Ali raised Ash’s head so that she could look into her eyes. That cut on her head was distracting her and she felt like she betrayed Ash. She promised to her that she will be with her no matter the situation.

“How did you get that?” Ali begged Ash to tell her.

“Look I don’t want you to freak out, okay? Promise me you won’t.” Ash finally looked in Ali’s eyes. She could see the dark circles under her eyes and she immediately knew Ali didn’t sleep either.

“I promise, just tell me.” That didn’t sound really reassuring and Ali knew that.

“I was in-“Ash’s sentence got interrupted by Kelley.

“Yo Ash, Solo didn’t come today, she is sick or something so you are #1 today. Coach sent me to get you.” Kelley shut the door and they could both hear the sound of her cleats hitting the floor.

“We gotta go.” Ash got up and tried to walk away but Ali grabbed her arm. That sent the jolt of electricity down her spine. She loved her touch and that was the only thing she needed right now.

“We are not finished here. After the practice, you and I are gonna talk.” Ali’s hand lingered a little too long on Ash’s for it to be just friendly.

 

The whole team was doing drills as they were preparing for the mini game that was always played at the end of the practice. Kelley and Whitney were practicing with Ashlyn. They were shooting balls at her but she never dove to defend.

“Yo Ash, get your head in the game!” Kelley said.

“Sorry.” Ash didn’t say much and she knew that this won’t end well.

As soon as Kelley shot at her, she dove and a loud scream filled the stadium. She was on the ground holding the place where the majority of her bruises were. On her ribs.

Whit was the first one to run to her, positioning her on her back.

“Ash, what hurts? Hey, talk to me, what hurts?” Whit was trying to pull her shirt up but Ash stopped her. “Ribs.” She somehow managed to say in between the sobs.

_What was that? Someone is lying down..oh god, it’s Ash..No no no no..God no, not her_

Ali started running and felt like the time had stopped. She was so fast by Ash’s side that it even surprised her.

“Ash, what’s wrong?!” Ali wiped the tears of her face and held her head in the place.

Whit told the girls to call the coach as she got up and pulled Ali with her to the side.

“Ali, listen to me. I know Ash will probably be pissed at me for telling you but I don’t care.”She continued as Ali was looking at her, panic all over her face.”Yesterday when she was looking for you and couldn’t find you, she sat in her Mercedes and-“Whit’s confession got interrupted by Ali as she was covering her mouth with her hand and started to sob uncontrollably.”No no no, Whit tell me that she didn’t-“

“Yeah, she crashed her Mercedes on the way to your house. I told her that it wasn’t a good idea but she wanted to make sure that you were alright.” When Whit finished Ali turned to Ash and she was still on the ground with all of the teammates around her.

She approached Ash and kneeled beside her talking Ash’s hand in hers.

“God, I’m so sorry. I was such an idiot.” Ali cried holding Ash’s hand as the cold wind dried their tears. Even the universe knew that it was time for them to be happy.

“It’s okay princess. I will be..okay.” Ash tried to get up and Whit helped her. They made their way to the bench and Ali sat next to her.

“Ash.. I-“Ali tried to apologize again.

“Don’t. It’s okay, really. It was my decision and therefore it was my fault.” Ash took Ali’s hand in hers.”I’m glad that you are okay. I don’t know how I would go on living if I lost you.” She admitted as she played with Ali’s fingers that were entangled with hers. Ali stared at her, eyes filled with tears.

_I won’t lose her again._

She scooted closer to Ash and hugged her. It felt natural again. It felt like she just got her world back.

“I will never, ever, do this to you again.” Ali was referring to the whole situation. The kiss. The fact that she ran away without even listening to Ashlyn.

Ashlyn looked at Ali and thought just how perfect she was. She glanced at her lips for just a second before distancing herself.

“Umm..Could you maybe help me get to the locker room? Whit will probably drive me home now so..” Ash asked looking at the ground.

“I could take you!” Ali offered a little bit too quickly which made Ash glance at her one more time.”That is if you want it, of course.” She tried to defend her way too quick response.

“Sure. If you want to.” Ash tried to get up and Ali helped her supporting a bit of her weight, actually as much as she could considering that she was in every way smaller than Ashlyn.

They made their way to the locker room and Ash sat down. She felt like she just ran a marathon and Ali noticed. She wanted to help so she offered to help Ash get changed.

“We should probably get you changed.” Ali attempted to pull Ash’s shirt off but she stopped her.”Oh come on Ash, it’s not like I haven’t seen you shirtless already. We had so many sleepovers that I can’t even count anymore.”

“No, it’s not that..I just..I can’t really get the shirt off.” Ash tried to look everywhere except at Ali.

Ali’s eyes widened at the realization. Ash was in bigger pain than she thought.

“Show me!” Ali demanded as her shock turned to slight anger.”Ashlyn Michelle Harris, don’t make me say it again.” She crossed her arms and started to walk towards Ash. She raised her hands up.

“Fine! Fine, I’ll do it. Just.. You’ll have to help me.” She got up and Ali approached her. Slowly they pulled Ash’s shirt off and she was standing in her tank top and shorts. Ali looked down to her ribs and saw that the majority of her torso was bruised. Tears started to fill Ali’s eyes as she was dragging her hand across the bruises.

“Oh my God..” She was speechless.

“It’s worse than it looks.” Ash tried to calm her down but she just continued to inspect her. She turned her around and saw the bruises on the back, near the spine in the upper right corner. “Why..Why would you..” Ash interrupted her with a hug. It was one of those which Ali loved the most. Ash hugged her and Ali buried her head in Ash’s neck feeling her pulse. At least she was alive. Ali got another chance.


	3. IN THE ARMS OF THE ANGEL

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After dropping Ash at home, will Ali realize that not everything is black and white? Will she see what has been in front of her the whole time?

Ash was the first one to break their hug and Ali hated the fact that she lost Ash’s touch. She cleared her throat and distanced herself.

“We should probably go, you need to rest.” Ali picked up their stuff and reached out to grab Ash’s hand.”You can squeeze any time the pain becomes too much to bare.” She smiled and Ash took her hand.

“Thank you for driving me.” Ash started to walk, slowly, as Ali opened the door for her.

They reached the parking lot and drove off. The drive to Ash’s house was quiet because neither of them knew what to say. Ash didn’t really want to say anything because she was afraid that Ali might run away again and Ali knew she crossed the line and she couldn’t lose Ash again.

“Are you okay?” Ali asked when she saw Ash holding her shoulder.”I’ll be fine. Just feeling like crap.” Ash focused on the road in front of them.

“How can you be so calm?” Ali squeezed the steering wheel trying to suppress the tears.

“What do you mean?” Ash finally looked at her being obviously confused.”How am I supposed to react?” She focused on Ali who was parking in front of Ash’s house. She turned off the engine and looked at her lap.

“I am the reason that the accident happened and y-“ Ash tried to interrupt her.

“Ali you a-“

“No, let me explain!” Ali looked up and turned to Ashlyn.”If I didn’t do that thing I did, none of this would’ve happened!” She ran her hand through her hair.

Ash was silent for a moment. She knew what to ask but was afraid of Ali’s reaction.

_Oh fuck it!_

“The thing? You mean the kiss?” Ash searched for the answer in Ali’s eyes but she couldn’t find anything. Only guilt. Ali was blaming herself for what happened.

Ali avoided the question and got out of the car instead. After a few seconds she opened the passenger door and helped Ash get out. Ali took their stuff and they made their way to the house.

Ash wasn’t sure how to feel. Should she be happy that Ali didn’t answer or should she be worried that the kiss might mean something? Sure, Ash has had a crush on Ali since like forever, but Ali never did anything to show that she looked at Ash that way.

_God, this is torture.._

“Do you wanna take the shower first or do you wanna go to the hospital?” Ali interrupted Ash’s thoughts.

“I’ll just take the shower; I don’t wanna go to the hospital.” Ash answered, sadness visible in her eyes as she quickly tried to walk away to the bathroom but Ali grabbed her hand.

“Ali, please..” Ash begged on the verge of crying.”You know how much I care about you and all of this is too much for me..I can’t lose you again. I can’t. You are my best friend..” She couldn’t stop the tears from falling.

“Please don’t cry..I can’t stand you crying..”Ali wiped her tears and embraced her in a long hug placing Ash’s head on her chest.”I will never leave you again.”Now she was the one that was crying. They stood in the living room for a while, not even noticing how much time had passed.

Ali never looked at Ash as just her best friend, but as something more. She never told Ash about it because she was scared of rejection. Ash always had a girlfriend and never treated Ali as anything more that best friend. She never tried anything on her.

They both had feelings for each other and neither side knew about just how both sided it was.

“Go take a shower.” Ali said distancing herself and looking at the ground.

Ash didn’t try to comfort her because she knew that there was nothing she could do now. She made her way to the bathroom and closed the door.

_Oh fuck..How am I supposed to take my clothes off? Shit._

She tried anyway but with every move she made it hurt a bit more. She had two choices. To ask Ali to come inside and help her or to shower in her clothes which she later figured was a bad idea since she would have to eventually take it off.

She tried to figure out another way but she couldn’t think of anything.

“Ali?” Ash called opening the door.

“What happened? Are you hurting?” Ali ran to the bathroom door and opened them fully so she could see Ash.

“No..umm..I-“Ash stuttered.”I need help.”

“Yeah, sure, anything!” Ali stated nodding her head.

“I can’t take my clothes off.” Ash looked away; she didn’t want to see Ali’s reaction.

Ali's eyes widened at the realization of what Ash said. She didn’t know what to do, she froze. When Ash finally looked at her and saw her frozen in front of her she decided to take back what she said. Maybe it’s better if she just calls Whit.

“Sorry, forget it. I will just call Whi-“

“No, I’ll do it. I mean..You are hurt and you need help, I’m your friend, I’ll do it. It’s no big deal, right?” Ali was quick to interrupt her when she saw that Ash was about to call it off.

“Are you sure? You don’t have to, really..” Ash felt terrible. She was in love with Ali and this wasn’t really helping the situation.

Ali closed the door and approached Ashlyn. She searched for the permission in Ash’s eyes and got it. Ash sat on the bathtub and tried to do it by herself once again but Ali stopped her. Slowly, she untied her shoes and took off her socks.  Ali told her to get up and Ash listened which led to Ali taking Ash’s shorts off. She was now standing in her tank top and boxers and felt so nervous.

_Shit! I can’t do this._

Ali didn’t realize that she was starring at Ash until Ash cleared her throat.

“Sorry, I was just..I-I was-“This time Ali stuttered.

“Riiiight.” Ash teased her and Ali caught herself smiling more than she should.

“Do you want me to help you or not?” Ali warned her crossing her hands.

“Sorry.”Ash smiled and gestured her to continue.

“Can you raise your hands up for me?” Ali was so focused on the task that she didn’t see just how nervous Ash was until Ash sighed heavily. “Hey, what’s wrong? Does it hurt?” Ali asked.

“No, I’m just.. I’m-“Ash tried to find the right words.

“You’re ashamed.” Ali nodded feeling a bit offended. They knew each other for a very long time and Ali just wanted too much at this point probably. At least that’s what she thought.

“No! I mean.. A little bit, but it’s not because of you. It’s just that I..I don’t want to push you to do this if you don’t want to. I don’t want you to distance yourself from me after this..” Ash looked at the ground and covered herself with her hands.

“Hey..” Ali cupped Ash’s face and forced her to look at her eyes.”I won’t run away.” She unintentionally glanced at Ash’s lips and licked hers which Ash noticed.

“Okay. Do it.” Ash raised her hands up as much as she could and Ali took off her tank top. Her hand decided to caress Ash’s shoulder without her consent which left Ash in shock.

_God she is beautiful..Jesus fuck Ali, stop!_

She blinked a couple thousand times before focusing on the task. Slowly, she lowered herself a bit and took off her boxers. They looked at each other and time suddenly stopped. Ali didn’t dare to look any lower than Ash’s face; she was scared that maybe this time she won’t be able to restrain herself. Instead, she decided to leave. She really needed to drink. She needed to get this picture out of her mind.

“I should probably go.” Ali backed away and left before Ash got the chance to thank her.

She went to the local bar and drank almost a bottle of tequila. Alcohol never did her any good and she would always do something stupid, but this time she didn’t care. She needed to drown her feelings in that alcohol and just forget about how much she loves Ashlyn. As something more than a friend.

It was half past midnight. Ash managed to get out of the bathtub and put on her boxers and tank top. The warm water eased her pain a little bit and she was happy when she realized that this time she could get dressed without anyone’s help. It was a small step forward but it meant a lot to her. She decided to watch a horror movie since she couldn’t sleep.

Twenty minutes into the movie and someone is knocking on her door. She jumped and immediately regretted it when she felt the pain. She looked to the door.

“It’s either the  killer or..yeah, it’s the killer.” Ash said out loud, carefully getting up from the couch. She tried to look through the window but jumped again when knocking became louder.

“Someone is not really patient. When is that a good sign?” She took the baseball bat and decided to open anyway.

As soon as she opened; her eyes widened and she stood there in shock. It was Ali. Drunk Ali to be exact.

“Wha-What are you doing here? It’s late and-Shit, are you drunk?” She lowered the bat and stared at Ali.

“A little bit.” Ali smiled at her and licked her lips.”Can I come in? I need to talk to you.”

She entered the house without waiting for the invite.

“Sure, help yourself.” Ash laughed a little and closed the door behind her.

Ali threw herself on the couch and closed her eyes for a second. She immediately got up and walked to Ash.

“I have something to confess.” She got so close to Ash that she could feel her breath.

“Whatever it is, I think you should probably do it tomorrow when you are sober.” Ash supported a bit of Ali’s weight as she was about to lose her balance. They stood in the dark room, alone. The only light there was the one coming from the moon.

_Even when she’s drunk, she is perfect.._

Ash was restraining herself so much right now. Every part of her body told her that she should go for it, but she knew better than to take advantage of the situation. Instead, she hugged Ali. She wanted her close and this was the only way.

“Ash, I’m fine. I want to do this!” Ali giggled, cleared her throat and straightened her back.”Ash, I-..I wanted to tell you that-“ She sighed feeling really disappointed in herself.

“Come on, let’s get you to bed.” Ash took her hand and Ali protested.

“I am supposed to be the one to take care of you, not the other way around!” Ali whined.

That made Ash laugh. She was so cute when she acted like a total child.

“Come on princess, there is a plenty of time for you to take care of me tomorrow!” Ash laughed and nudged Ali.

“But I really want to do you..I-I mean tell you. Yeah, tell you that..Uhh..Wait, tell you what?” Ali mumbled and as soon as they got to Ash’s room she fell on the bed. Ash took her shoes off and covered her.”Wait, where are you going?” Ali asked when she saw Ash leaving the room.

“I’ll sleep on the couch. If I’ll be able to.” Ash grabbed the doorknob and opened the door.

“Close the door.” Ali demanded.

Ash slowly closed the door, feeling a little bit scared. She had never seen Ali like this.

“Ali.. You okay?” She managed to ask as Ali got up and walked to her.

“I won’t waste any more time.”


	4. BED OF ROSES

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After things came back to normal it all seemed perfect. But everything that is good doesn't last long. Or does it?

Ali backed Ash up against the door and grabbed her waist. She needed her touch and she was ready to take it either way.

“Ali, stop.” Ash gently pushed Ali off of her.”I can’t. You are drunk..” She said.

Ali stood there with her mouth slightly opened, she embarrassed herself again.

“You..You don’t like me, do you?” She tried to hold herself together.

“No, I like you. I really do, I just can’t do it when you are in this state. It wouldn't be fair to you.” She cupped Ali’s right cheek and pulled her closer, their foreheads touching. “I want it to be special.”

Ali nodded and pulled back.

“Don’t run away again, please..” Ash begged.

“I..”Ali sighed.”I won’t.”

She made her way to the bed and sat down. Seeing Ali like that broke Ash’s heart. She never meant to hurt her. Ash approached the bed and kneeled down in front of Ali even though every bit of her body was in pain.

“Do you still want me to stay?” Ash took Ali’s hands in hers and looked into her eyes.

Even though Ali wanted to feel every bit of Ash’s body on hers; she had to wait. She had to do it right.

“Yeah.. Yeah I want you to stay.” She pulled Ash up and signaled her to lie down next to her as she made her way into the bed. Ash listened and Ali covered them up.

“Are you in pain?” Ali tried to make a conversation.

“No, I’m fine. Don’t worry.” She pulled Ali closer which made her shiver. No matter how many times Ash touched her she would always shiver.

“This feels so good.” Ali scooted closer to her and placed her hand over Ash’s abs. She winced in pain and Ali removed her hand.”I’m sorry, did I hurt you?” Her eyes were full of worry.

“It’s okay, I don’t mind.” Ash smiled and placed Ali’s hand right where it was seconds ago.”I really don’t mind..” She closed her eyes and they both drifted to sleep.

It was 8:32 and Ali woke up first. Seeing the sun that was shining through the curtains and birds singing in the distance she thought that this was going to be a good day. That was until she tried to get up and a strong headache hit her.

“Jesus fuck!” She cursed not realizing that Ash was sleeping beside her.

“Mhm?” Ash mumbled turning her head to Ali, her eyes still closed.

“Sorry, I just have a terrible headache.” Ali threw her head back on the pillow burying her face in Ash’s neck.

“Do you want me to bring you something?” Ash asked finally opening her eyes.

“I don’t need anything. Just you.” The last part made Ash turn her head to Ali in the speed of light. She licked her lips and glanced at Ali’s.

_Here we go. All or nothing Ash, all or nothing._

She cupped Ali’s left cheek and closed the space between them. Immediately the jolt of electricity ran through her whole body. Ali’s lips were so warm and soft, like heaven. It wasn’t until now that she realized that Ali was the drug that she needed the whole time.

She pulled Ali on top of her and placed her hands on Ali’s waist.

“God, you’re so beautiful..” Ash said pulling Ali down and crashing their lips together.

“I’ve waited so long for this.” Ali placed her hands on the edge of Ash’s boxers which earned her a moan. She quickly pulled away.

“Oh God, did I hurt you again?” Ali instantly felt guilty.

“Stop asking me that.” Ash narrowed her brows pretending to be angry.

“I’m sorry; I just don’t want you to feel uncomfortable.” Ali tucked a small part of Ash’s blonde hair behind her ear.

“The only way you can hurt me is by leaving me.” Ash entangled their fingers together.”I will always forgive you. No matter the situation.”

Ali gently kissed Ash’s lips and Ash gave into the kiss. Soon enough the kiss became more passionate and with every touch Ali wanted more and more. She licked Ash’s bottom lip asking for permission and Ash granted it. Their tongues moved in a perfect rhythm.

“I need more.” Ali begged as she bit down on Ash’s neck. She left a trail of hickeys from Ash’s neck to her collar bone.

Even though it hurt so fucking much, Ash gathered the strength to change their position. She was now hovering over Ali as she lied on her back. She ripped off Ali’s shirt and pulled her leg over herself so that they could be as close as possible. Ali placed her other leg the same way and pulled Ash down.

“Ash, please..” She closed her eyes and threw her head back.

“Please what?” Ash made her work for every bit of this.

“I need you to-“ Ali tried to say it but as soon as Ash ran her hand through Ali’s hair and sucked her earlobe, she lost it. She moaned, trying to finish the sentence.”I need you to fuck me, please.”

 

If Ash wasn’t horny enough, this definitely made her hornier. Ali didn’t have to ask her twice. She slid her hand in Ali’s underwear instantly feeling her wetness. Ali dug her nails in Ash’s back.

“I see you didn’t need too much..” Ash teased Ali, not giving her what she wanted right away.

“Ash, I’m begging you.. please..just..” Ali grabbed Ash’s hand so that she can’t get it out.”I need to feel you inside me.” She breathed in Ash’s ear which finally convinced her to give Ali what she wants. She slid two fingers inside of her and pumped slowly at first but as soon as she felt Ali contract around her fingers she started pumping faster.

“Oh God, I’m so clos-“ Ali finished her sentence with a loud moan.”Oh Ash, yes!” She held Ash’s hand a little bit longer and then let go.

Ash pulled away and supported her weight on one hand while the other was across her stomach. This was a bit too much for her after all. Ali quickly sat up and placed her hand on Ash’s. Even though she was still out of breath and shaking. “Ash baby, look at me.” Her head was down and Ali was panicking way too much.”Look at me!”Ash’s head was still down and tears were falling down on the sheets. “Ash, I am taking you to the hospital!”

Ali got up and put some shirt on that she found in Ash’s closet as well as her boxers and shorts. She grabbed her car keys and helped Ash up.

“Ali I can’t, it hurts too much!” Ash cried.

“I know baby, but you have to-“Before she could finish the sentence, Ash fell down on her knees. Ali was terrified; she didn’t know what to do. She felt warm tears on her cheeks, she was crying.

“I’ll call the ambulance, hang on Ash.” She took the phone that was on the night stand and realized it was hers; Ash had it the whole time.

 Ash was trying to stay strong, she didn’t want to cry in front of Ali but as soon as Ali sat down behind her and pulled her into a hug, she lost it. She was sobbing and gripping Ali’s shirt while the tears were falling down on Ali’s hands.

The ambulance came quickly and they took Ash to the nearest hospital, but not before Ali could jump in the back of the ambulance.

“Sorry Ms. Krieger, but you can’t be here.” One paramedic said as he was tying Ash with the safety belt.

She stared at him angrily, tears streaming down her face.”She is everything I have and I’m going!”

He stopped to think about it and finally gave into it.”Fine, but don’t get in the way, please.”

She nodded and they arrived at the hospital 15 minutes later. Ali was holding Ash’s hand the whole time even though Ash wasn’t really conscious.

“Hold on baby, we are almost there!” Ali squeezed Ash’s hand and Ash did the same.

They rolled her in the ER and one of the nurses stopped Ali just before the entrance.

“Sorry Miss, but this is as far as you go.”

This sentence shattered Ali’s heart into million pieces. She was supposed to be in there with Ash, holding her hand the whole time, she promised.

The first thing that came to her mind was Whitney. She didn’t know what happened.

Ali took her phone out and dialed Whit’s number. It was ringing, good.

“Yo Ali, what’s up?” Whit was driving home after the breakfast she had with Kelley and Johnston.

“Ash is in the hospital, can you come, please?” Ali was breathing heavily and Whit knew that it was serious.

“I’m on my way!” She turned around in the middle of the road and threw her phone on the passenger seat. “You just can’t rest, can you? Shit!” Whit cursed knowing how stubborn Ash was. She arrived in 10 minutes and ran to the ER. Ali was sitting on the floor hugging her knees and looking at the door.

“Ali!” Whit ran to her and embraced her in a tight hug.

“Whit, I’m so scared! I can’t lose her!” Ali sobbed in Whit’s arms as Whit ran her hands though Ali’s hair, trying to calm her down.

They were interrupted by the doctor who was working on Ash.

“Excuse me, Ms. Krieger?” He guessed. Ali got up and approached him.

“Yes, that’s me! Tell me, is she going to be okay? What happened?!” Ali nervously grabbed the hem of her shirt.

“She has three cracked ribs.” Doctor looked at the papers and then at Ali, he was confused.”How did that happen? I mean aside the bruises all over her body she will be fine when the ribs heal.”

Ali’s mind immediately goes to the hickeys and the trail she left on her neck and collarbone.

“Thank you doctor. Can I see her now?”

“Not yet, we will get her to the room and you will be able to see her there. “ He looked at Whit and her and walked away still looking at the papers.

After a few minutes they got Ash into her room.

“You can see her now. Right this way.” The doctor guided them to the room and Whit hugged Ali’s shoulders right before they made their way into the room.

“Hey Whit, hands off my girl!” Ash smiled and looked at Ali.

Whit narrowed her brows and looked at both of them alternately as Ali made her way to the bed.

“How do you feel?” Ali asked.

Ash pulled her down and kissed her passionately. “Better.” She smiled still not opening her eyes.

Whit stood there in shock as they eventually made out.”Well finally!” She raised her hands up in excitement.

They both smiled at her and in that moment the doctor came in.

“Ms. Harris, you will be free to go as soon as we take care of the papers.” He called Ali out and she barely let go of Ash’s hand.

After half an hour they were finally on their way home. Whit was driving and Ali was on the back seat with Ash who was sleeping in her arms.

Whit turned her head slightly to the right, her eyes still on the road. “Thanks for being there for her. You are all that she has. You are her world.”


	5. PERFECT STRANGERS

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please ignore the mistakes that I've made and will make in future chapters. English is not my native language and at the typing speed that I'm writing these chapters, the mistakes will happen. Thank you for reading this story and have a nice day!

They arrived at Ash’s house and even though Ali didn’t want to wake her up, she had to.

“Ash, baby, let’s get you to the bed.” Ash shifted slightly not wanting to get outside.

“But this is so comfortable; I don’t want you to leave.” Ash complained still not opening her eyes.

Ali opened the door letting the cold wind caress Ashlyn’s face.

“You are mean!” Ash mumbled.”Fine, I’m going.” She got up and Whit helped her to get out while Ali unlocked the door. Of course she had the key, she was special.

“I should probably go; will you be able to do this on your own?” Whit took her jacket and turned to Ali.

“Yeah, no problem.” Ali smiled as she opened the door for Whitney.

Ash was standing beside the couch supporting her weight on her left arm. She was just staring at Ali. _God she is so pretty._

A sudden wave in front of her face interrupted her staring. She didn’t hear what Ali just said.

“Ash are you gonna keep staring or do you want to lie down?” Ali teased her, trying to cheer her up a little bit since she was kinda absent throughout the whole ride.

“Sorry, what?” Ash asked.

“Do you wanna lie down?” Ali narrowed her brows and approached Ashlyn.”Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m okay. For real this time.” Ash smiled weakly and took Ali’s hand which was stretched out towards her.

Ali managed to get Ash to her bed and started to collect the clothing that was all over the bedroom floor since they left in a hurry. She went to the bathroom to put it in the laundry basket when she heard Ash asking.

“Are you mad at me?” Ash asked with a shaky voice.

“What?!” Ali rushed out of the bathroom and stared at Ash to try and figure out why she asked that.

“Why would you think that?” Ali walked over to the bed and sat down taking Ash’s hand in hers which resulted in Ash turning to the other side and staring at the wall.

“Hey, talk to me! Ash, come on.” Ali lied down next to her and removed Ash’s hair from her cheeks.

“I ruined it. I know how much you wanted to do it right.” Ash’s shaking gave her away and Ali instantly knew that she was crying.

“You didn’t ruin anything! Hey! Look at me!” Ali turned Ash’s head and cupped her cheeks.”It was perfect. Because it was with you.” She kissed her and wiped her tears.”Now get some rest. I will drive you to the practice tomorrow if you want. Alex is injured too so you can sit with her.” Ash nodded and took Ali’s hand in hers.

”I will sleep if you stay.” Ash pulled Ali down on her and bit her bottom lip which made Ali moan.

“Ash, you have to rest. If you want me to stay, I’ll stay, just-“ Ash smiled seductively and kissed Ali’s neck making her moan once again.

“Ash please, I will do anything, just go to sleep. If you continue, I won’t be able to stop..” Ali was resisting so hard not to give into it because she knew that Ash wasn’t strong enough.

“Anything?” Ash teased. She placed her hands under Ali’s shirt and she shivered.

“As soon as you heal, I promise..” Ali was still hovering over Ash and her hands were in Ali’s hair. She breathed into Ali’s ear.

“You will have to make up for this.” That made Ali question her decision and whether it was the right one or not. She slowly took Ash’s hands off of her and licked her lips.

“I will give you anything you want.” Ali gripped the sheets and somehow managed to pull herself together.

_She will be the death of me.._

 

 

The next morning, alarm went off and Ali opened her eyes. She shook Ash and removed her hand from Ash’s neck.

“Ash baby, it’s time. Do you wanna go?” She laughed when Ash grabbed her arm and pulled her down.

“Not even a good morning?” Ash smiled keeping her eyes closed.

“Good morn-“ Ash pulled her down and left the trail of kisses from her forehead to her lips.

“Morning princess.” She sighed and opened her eyes.

“Are you feeling better?” Ali sat on the bed looking for her shorts. As she saw them next to the door she got up went over to pick them up.

Ash turned her head and saw Ali in her boxers.

“Oh I am feeling better!” She raised her brows and Ali turned around.

“Ashlyn, are you checking me out?” Ali shamed Ash.

“Of course not. What kind of animal do you think I am?” Ash pretended to be insulted.

Ali decided to take advantage of the situation. She took off her shirt and threw it on the floor.

“Are you sure? Wanna try again?”

Ash turned around and her mouth became dry as she took her time to check Ali out once again. Not removing her eyes off of her, she got up and walked to Ali. She finally looked at her eyes and Ali pulled her closer, leaving her hands on Ash’s neck.

“Why are you torturing me like that?” Ash was feeling like her whole body was on fire by just looking at Ali.

“You are torturing yourself.” Ali teased once again tracing Ash’s tattoos with her right hand while her left hand was still on Ash’s neck.

“No, you are. You won’t let me do anything about it.”

Ali smiled and pecked her on the lips. “We have to go.” She took her shirt and her shorts and got dressed. “Do you need help?” She asked Ash who was trying to put on her sweatpants.

“Help getting dressed? You are offering to help me get dressed? Wow. Alexandra Krieger wants me to put on some clothes! Hell, even better, she wants to do it herself! Aren’t you the one who usually wants to rip it off?” Ash stood there, pretending to be in shock and Ali nudged her shoulder.

“Fine! Do it yourself then!” Ali turned around and walked to the door but Ash stopped her, hugging her from the back.

“I’m kidding princess.” Ash whispered in her ear.

“We really need to go now.” Ali took Ash’s hand and her sports bag and they left.

 

They arrived at the stadium 15 minutes before the practice.

“Look who decided to grace us with their presence!” Syd teased Ash and Ali when they entered the locker room. Kelley threw the ball at Ali but Ash deflected it. She felt the pain but didn’t want to worry anyone.

“Still got it Harris!” O’Hara took her pre-wrap and shook Ash’s hand pulling her into the hug after it.

“You know it!” Ash smiled and went outside with her.

The practice started after a few minutes and Ash sat on the bench. Soon after, Alex sat next to her carrying water bottles for the players.

“Yo Ash! I didn’t expect you here. Are you feeling better?” Alex hugged her and Ash nodded.”I’m better, yeah. Nice to see you too Alex.”

After about an hour of drills and laps they played a mini game in which Ali’s team won. She went up to Ash who was still sitting on a bench with Alex.  When she saw Ali coming, she got up and Ali hugged her. That was their routine, before and after the game they hugged.

“Aww, you two are adorable.” Alex teased them without thinking serious.”Ali, can I get one too?” Alex jumped up and stood beside Ash.

“No, you can’t. That’s only for me.” Ash hugged Ali tighter which made her giggle.

“Yo Ash, I’m not trying to steal your cuddle buddy.” Alex raised one brow and smile appeared in the right corner of her mouth.

“Cuddle buddy? Yeah..” Ash took Ali’s hand and winked at Alex while walking backwards.

Alex wasn’t sure what she meant by that but she really wanted to know. Ash can’t just say that and leave. Not a chance.

“Wh-What? What do you mean by that? Yo Ash, don’t make me chase you! Get over here!” Alex ran towards them but as soon as she was very close to Ash, Ali stretched her hands in front of her, telling Alex to slow down.

“Alex, slow down! She has 3 cracked ribs; I don’t think you jumping on her would make it better!”

Something was going on with them and Alex wanted to know. But wait..How did Ali know about the broken ribs and they didn’t? I mean if it was an official physical, the whole team would’ve gotten the news.

“Wait..How do you know about that?” Alex narrowed her brows and crossed her hands. She was coming closer to Ali and the smile on her face told Ali that Alex was suspecting something.

“Well a few days ago she ended up in the hospital. I was with her when it happened and I called the ambulance.” Ali defended herself trying not to give away too much.

“You were with her? Like..Where?” Alex raised her brows and stood in between Ali and Ash so that Ash can’t tell Ali what to say.

“Well..I was..I w-“Ali was speechless for a second.”I was at her house, helping her with.. stuff.” Ali tried really hard to get rid of Alex’s questions, but it wasn’t enough.

“At her house, huh? Alright Krieger, alright.” Alex raised her hands in surrender and slowly started walking backwards until she got to Ash. “You two are suspicious.” She pointed her finger at Ash and glanced at her neck. That’s when she knew. “Friends, huh?” Alex jogged back to the locker room and the two of them left the stadium a few minutes later.

 

Ash decided to drive this time and Ali didn’t mind it. But something was still bothering Ash. How did Alex know something was going on? Ali and Ash were like this since forever and nothing was implying that something was going on now. She became quiet.

“Talk to me.” Ali placed her hand on Ash’s thigh. She immediately jumped.

“Gosh, don’t do that while I’m driving.” She shivered.

“I see that something is bothering you. Tell me.” She observed Ash.

“It’s nothing..Just..How did Alex know that something is going on between us?” She asked.

“Well if you are asking for my opinion, I would say that that hickey gave you away.” Ali traced the hickey with her fingers and smiled.

“Hickey?!What do you mean? What hickey?!” Luckily they were at Ash’s house so she just stopped in the driveway. She ran into the house to the mirror that was in her room.

“ALEXANDRA BLAIRE KRIEGER!” Ali heard her shouting and slowly walked to Ash’s room.

“What’s wrong baby?” She leaned against the door that she previously closed.

“Don’t baby me! What’s this?” Ash walked over to the door and pointed at the hickey that Ali left last night.

“What do you mean what is this?” Ali tried to trace the hickey with her fingers, but Ash grabbed her hand and stopped her.

“Don’t touch me.” She tried to be serious and it was working at first.

Ali tried one more time but was stopped again.

“I said, don’t touch me.”

Ali liked when Ash was acting like she was angry. It kinda turned her on.

“But I-“ Ash backed her against the door and it made her moan.

“You want everyone to know? You want that? You’re gonna get it.”


	6. THE ONE THAT GOT AWAY

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chapter where Jill is not so bad and everything is a little bit better, but what is Ashlyn hiding? Is it as bad as Ali thought? Keep reading and find out. :)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for not updating this story yesterday. I had a busy day and didn't find any time to update. So here is a new chapter. Enjoy!

Ali’s phone rang. “Ash, wait..” Ali managed to breathe out.

“Do you really have to get that?” She asked Ali with her puppy eyes.

“Stop doing that. You know I fall for it every time.” Ali punched her playfully.

She made her way to the night stand and when she looked at her phone, it read Coach Ellis.

“Hello?” Ali sat on the bed and waited for response.

“Hi Ali, I wanted to let you know that we have to talk tomorrow. After the practice.” Jill made it sound really serious. Whatever she said sounded like it was a matter of life or death.

That left Ali in shock. She didn’t know what to say and why would coach want to talk only to her.

“Ali, are you there?” Jill asked when she didn’t answer.

“Yeah. I-I will be there.” Ali managed to say and immediately hung up. She started shaking and questioning every decision that she’s made in the past 6 months.

“Ali, what’s wrong?” Ash ran to the bed and kneeled in front of her cupping her right cheek.

“I-..” Ali couldn’t breathe, she tried to tell Ash, but she couldn’t find any words.”I don’t know.”

“Well..Who was that?” Ash sat next to her but Ali got up and started walking around the room.

“It was coach. She said she needed to talk to me after the practice.” Ali mumbled something to herself after that but Ash didn’t quite catch that.

“I’m sure it’s nothing to worry about.” Ash got up and held her distance, knowing that Ali can get really upset in these kinds of situations.

“How can you say that? You know what that means. Last time coach had a conversation with someone, that someone was no longer a player for uswnt. I mean.. What did I do wrong?” Ali was freaking out.

“Why would you think that she would ever replace you with another defender? You are our best defense player!” Ash couldn’t believe what she heard.

“Then what is it?! Why would s-“Ali stood there, her mouth wide open. “Oh my god..”

“What?” Ash waited patiently.

“What if she knows?” Ali’s heart started beating really fast.

“Knows what?! Ali I don’t-“Ash figured out what Ali wanted to say. She covered her face with her hands and sat down.” You think Alex told her about us?” She stood up and took her phone.  After dialing Alex’s number, she opened the balcony door.

“What are you doing? Who are you calling?” Ali feared that she was calling the coach.”Ash, please don’t..”

“Don’t worry, I’m calling Alex.” Ash was furious, not so much because Alex might have told the coach about them but because seeing Ali like that broke her heart.

After a few minutes Alex answered.

“Yo Ash, do you know what time it is? Well I can tell you, it’s fucking late.” Alex was sleeping when Ash called.

“I need you to tell me something. Did you tell Jill about us?” Ash wasn’t really patient right now. She wanted to deal with this as soon as possible.

“Woow Harris, I didn’t know we had a thing! You shoul-“She interrupted Alex.

“Alex please, I don’t have time for this! Tell me! Did you or did you not tell Jill about me and Ali?” Ash didn’t realize that she was yelling.

“Calm down baby..” Ali hugged her from behind.

“I did not! I would never! You didn’t even confirm it.” Alex realized that they had a situation. “Why? What’s going on?”

“Okay, thank you. It’s nothing really, I just..wanted to know.” Ash was ready to hang up when Alex spoke up.

“Ash, I know that something is wrong. You are always up for a good joke and now you are acting like someone is dying. You never act like that unless it’s serious.”

“I don’t know what’s going on.” Ash looked at Ali for permission to tell Alex and she got it.”Coach called Ali and she told her that they need to talk tomorrow after the practice..” Ash said nervously.

“Oh shit.. Well that’s not good. You think someone figured you two out before me and told her?” Alex was going through everyone she knew on the team that could’ve told the coach but no one stood out.

“I don’t know. I guess we will see tomorrow. Sorry for waking you up, good night.” Ash apologized and kissed Ali’s forehead.

“No worries, night you two.” Alex hung up and went back to sleep.

 

“She didn’t say anything.” Ash felt like she disappointed Ali when she didn’t figure out how the coach knew.”I’m sorry.”

“Hey! It’s okay. We don’t even know if that is the reason she is asking for me.” Ali sat in Ash lap and cupped her cheeks.”If it is than I will have to do these hickeys a little lower.” She raised her brow and bit her lip while looking into Ash’s eyes.

“Fuck, don’t do that..” Ash shivered and grabbed Ali’s waist when she pushed her onto the bed.

“I can do whatever I want.” Ali whispered seductively in Ash’s ear. She took Ash’s shirt off and kissed her deeply. Licking Ash’s bottom lip, she grabbed the hem of her boxers and Ash couldn’t suppress a moan.

“Someone’s a bit greedy. Aren’t they?” Ali teased.

“Fuck. Oh my god..” Ash bit her fist and tried not to slide her hand inside Ali’s shorts. Instead, she changed their positions so that she would be hovering over Ali.

“No one talks to me like that in my house.” Ash took off Ali’s shorts and put her right leg in between Ali’s when she felt the wetness. “Speaking of greedy..” She smiled and reached for Ali’s underwear then she stopped her.

“Wait.” Ash froze. She didn’t know what she did wrong and why was Ali stopping when she was clearly enjoying.

“Did I do something wrong?” Ash immediately pulled back and Ali grabbed her hand.

“No! God no! I want you to lie down.” Ali looked at Ash with the look of understanding.

“Why?” Ash was clearly confused and she thought Ali wanted to be a bottom since she didn’t complain when Ash changed their positions.”Is this your way of telling me that I should rest?” Ash protested.

“Yes. And you should rest because those ribs won’t heal like that..” Ali tried to kiss Ash when she backed away. Ali stood there surprised.

“Fine. I will rest.” Ash lied down and turned to the other side covering herself.

“Ash, come on.. Don’t be like that.” Ali caressed her hand but she shrugged it off.

“Like what? Like I wanna show you how much you mean to me and how much I want to make you happy but you won’t let me? Well I’m sorry then.” Ali knew that Ash was always putting her in front of everything and she was grateful for that. But Ash never thought about herself. It was always Ali in front of everything and everyone.

“Baby, I’m sorry..”Ali backed away and sat on the bed looking at the sheets. “It’s just..You are not telling me if it hurts or if you feel uncomfortable. You are always thinking about me. If I’m okay and if I’m going to be comfortable. Don’t get me wrong, I love it. I just want to take care of you for once!”

That made Ash turn to face her.

“How can I not? I have the most beautiful girl in my bed right now. I have you when I wake up.” Ash desperately tried to explain it to her.

Ali scooted closer to her and cupped her face. She leaned in and kissed Ash which made her cry. When Ali broke the kiss, another tear streamed down Ash’s face and she looked at Ali, searching for the answer.

“What did I do to deserve you?” Ali was mentally slapping herself for being so overprotective and sensitive.

“You smiled at me.” Ash answered and wiped her tears away.”I’m really tired.” Ash said lying down.

Without a word, Ali lied down beside her and buried her head in Ash’s neck.

 

“Ashhhhh, stop it!” Ali woke up to Ash tickling her with her hair.

“Get up! We have to go! The practice started 10 minutes ago!” Ash was already dresses when she uncovered Ali and threw the sheets on the floor.

“What?! What do you mean 10 minutes ago, why didn’t you wake me?!” Ali jumped off the bed and quickly grabbed all of her stuff. “Let’s go! Oh god, coach is gonna kill us!”

Ash started laughing, holding her stomach. She couldn’t believe Ali really fell for that.

“Ash, come on! Are you fucking kidding me right now?” Ali got angry at Ash. She couldn’t be late, not today.

“I’m kidding! Hahahah” Ash fell down, still laughing.

“You little piece of shit! What time is it?!” Ali was relieved, but still pissed at Ash for messing with her.

“It’s 5:38” Ash was trying to catch her breath.

“Did you just fuck me up? I almost died!” Ali over exaggerated.”Fuck!” She threw her bag down and breathed out in relief.

Seeing that Ali was approaching her, Ash got up and walked backwards to the door.

“Aliii no! Be a good girl!” She didn’t realize that she got into another room.

Ali was still walking towards her but as soon as she realized that they were in another room, child’s room, she stopped and looked around.

“Ash, whose room is t-“Seeing where she went, Ash pulled Ali out and closed the door. She locked the door and walked away slowly still looking at them.

“Ash, you okay?” Ali tried to snap her out of it, but she just waved no and rushed down the stairs.

“Ash! Wait! Where are you going?!” Ali followed her down and saw her outside the house.

She was looking for her car keys since she had another one, not just the Mercedes.

“Come on! Where the fuck are they?!” Ash was feeling so many emotions right now. Anger. Sadness. Fear. Guilt.

“Ash, talk to me, what happened? Whose room is that?”

“I can’t talk right now, don’t wait for me, I won’t be going to practice today.” Ash rushed to her car, crying her eyes out.

“Ash, wait! Ash!” Ali was left in front of the house.

_What the hell was that? And more importantly where did she go?_

Ali decided to go in that room one more time, maybe that way she could find out who lived there.

Making her way through the dark hallways, she reached for the doorknob and unlocked the door. When she got inside, she could’ve seen that no one was sleeping in it for a long time. The furniture was dusty and the toys were still on the bedroom floor.

_What happened here?_

She closed the door and turned on the light. The room was purple. It had a little closet and a rocking chair which was pink. A bunch of Barbie dolls were beside the bed which was still messy. On the nightstand was unframed picture of Ash. Ali turned it around and there was a note.

_“Whenever you miss me, just look at this picture and remember how much I love you. Ash x”_

Ali placed the picture exactly where she found it and inspected the room once more. “There is not a single picture of whoever lived in this room. There is no picture of that person in the house. What happened here?” Ali thought out loud. It was freaking her out and she decided to leave the room.

Practice was in 20 minutes so she decided to head over there. Throughout the whole practice she was thinking about Ash. When they finally finished, she wasn’t so scared to talk to Jill anymore.

“You wanted to see me coach?” Ali walked in Jill’s office.

“Yes Ali. Sit down.” She gestured to the chair in front of her.”I wanted to let you know that you are no longer going to p-“Ali already knew what Jill was going to say so she tried to convince Jill that she needed that place on the roster.

“Coach, please, I need that spot..Don’t replace me, I’ll prove to y-“

“Ali, you are staying on the roster, don’t worry about that. You are no longer going to play for Washington Spirits.” Jill waited for a response but all that she got was Ali looking at her with her mouth open like she is trying to say something.

“Wha-What do you mean I am not playing for Spirits anymore? Did they terminate my contract, I don’t understand.” Ali couldn’t believe it.

“No, they are transferring you to the Orlando Pride. You are going to play will Ashlyn and Alex next season.”

That felt like someone just lifted the burden from her shoulders. She thanked the coach for telling her and left the office.

But something was not right. She was supposed to feel happy about this. The only thing on her mind right now was Ashlyn. Where was she?

Meanwhile, Ashlyn was at the cemetery. She was sitting in front of a little grave holding her necklace. It was a golden shark tooth that she got as a present. This was the only place that she could blame herself for what happened and that’s exactly what she did.

Her phone started ringing and she answered without looking at the screen.

“Hello?” She answered, quietly sobbing.

“Ash, where are you? I’m worried sick about you. Please, tell me so I can come and pick you up.” Ali begged her.

“I’m at the cemetery.” Ash hung up and hugged her knees, burying her head in between.

After 12 minutes, Ali arrived and by the time Ali found Ash, she already stopped crying. Now she was only staring at the tombstone.

“Ash, what are you doing here? Baby, it’s cold outside and you are shaking.” Ali approached her slowly and sat down beside her. She hugged her and ran her hands up and down Ash’s arms trying to warm her up. Seeing that Ash wasn’t looking at her at all she followed her look and saw the tombstone in front of them. It read:

_“In loving memory of Madison Harris_

_September 6 th, 2006 – July 11th ,2012”_

At that moment, Ash turned her head to Ali and spoke up.

“Ali..” She stopped for a second to breathe out.”Meet Madison Harris..My sister.”


	7. WAIT FOR ME TO COME HOME

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Now that Ali knows the truth, will it be easier for Ash to go through it? And does Ali know the whole truth? Who else is behind it?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry guys, I had a pretty bad headache yesterday so today you are getting two chapters! Enjoy!

Ali stood there speechless.

_What does she mean “her sister”? I didn’t know she even had one. This is..I don’t know what to think._

She pulled Ash closer and embraced her into a tight hug. Ash grabbed her shirt and broke down..She sobbed uncontrollably while looking at the grave in front of them.

“Ash, I’m so sorry. I didn’t know..” Ali didn’t know how to react because this was something big. Really big. She kissed Ash’s forehead and they sat there on the cold grass for hours. Ali didn’t even consider trying to get Ash home. She needed this. She needed Ali.

“She was so-“Ash broke down immediately when she tried to explain to Ali what happened.

“Shhh, don’t..” Ali kissed her neck and pulled her even closer.

Eventually, Ash asked Ali to drive her home and they arrived after a few minutes.

“Do you want me to fill the tub for you?” Ali carefully asked, not knowing how to break the silence.

“Sure..” Ash entered the bathroom and took her shirt and her jeans off. She leaned to the sink and tried to clear her mind. Ali interrupted her with the hug from behind.

“Thank you.” Ash smiled politely and entered the tub.

While she was trying to calm down, Ali kneeled beside her and took Ash’s hand in hers, rubbing little circles on the back of her hand. Soon enough, she started washing all that dirt off of her.

“Let’s get you to bed.” Ali helped her up and handed her a towel.”I will wait outside.”

After she got dressed, Ash walked in the bedroom and she saw Ali sitting on the end of the bed. She sat next to her and after she removed Ali’s hair from her neck, she kissed her.

“Thank you for being there..” Ash whispered in her ear. After Ali nodded, she continued. “ That was her room..”

“Ash, you don’t have to-“ Ali felt like her heart is going to explode from all this sadness.

“You deserve to know.” Ash took Ali’s hand in hers. “She used to come here a lot. When I wasn’t at home, she would miss me a lot so my mum would drive all the way here from Orlando just so she could be with me.” She quickly wiped the tears away. “She is-“ She narrowed her brows in pain. “-was my anchor. And what happened was my fault.” She admitted it out loud.

“No, baby, don’t blame yourself. I’m sure it wasn-“

“No Ali, it was my fault. I am not trying to feel sorry for myself; it’s just the way it is.” Ash lied down and pulled Ali down so her head would rest on Ash’s chest. “I’m sorry that I didn’t tell you.”

“Ash, don’t..don’t worry about it. It’s just too early and I will wait. As long as I have to and I’m not leaving your side.” She tightened her grip around Ash and closed her eyes. She fell asleep listening to Ash’s heartbeat.

Morning came earlier than expected. Both of them felt like nothing is going to be the same again. Since they didn’t have practice today, Ali decided to invite a few friends over to cheer Ash up.

Ash was still in bed, checking her phone, when Ali walked in carrying the breakfast.

“Princess, you didn’t have to..” Ash tried to protest.

“I wanted to.” Ali placed it on the night stand and kissed her. This kiss was different. Every bit of pain they both felt was in it. Ali couldn’t hold the tears down. “Sorry.” She apologized.

“Don’t ever apologize for crying. I might just kill the person who made you cry, but it is okay to cry. I cried for a long time and here I am now, sitting beside the most beautiful person in the whole world.” Ash smiled as much as she could and hugged Ali.

“My warrior.” Ali whispered to her neck. When they broke the hug, Ali spoke up again.”Would you mind if I invited a few players over? I was thinking Engen, O’Hara, Syd, Heath and HAO.”Ali handed a plate over to Ash.”That is if you want. If not, I totally unders-“

“Sounds like a plan.” Ash smiled and took her shirt off as she was planning to take a shower.

“Wow, wow..Not while I’m carrying the dishes!” Ali almost dropped the plate when she saw Ash standing there in her boxers and sports bra.

“Well it’s not my fault that you can’t get enough of this.” Ash joked gesturing to her body.

“Well it is your fault because you are constantly taking off your shirt!” Ali fought back.

“And how do you suggest I take a shower?  With my jacket on?” Ash came closer to Ali. She knew that it would distract Ali even more.

“Maybe you should!” Ali didn’t know what to say. She left as soon as she said that and took the dishes to the kitchen.  That made Ash laugh and she heard it. She smiled in return.

 

After Ash took a shower and got dressed the doorbell rang.

“I’ll get it!” Ali yelled from downstairs and ran to the door. “Hey guys, come on in!”

Engen and HAO were the first to arrive. They brought some chips and two packs of beer.

“When did you come here? We thought we were going to be the first to arrive!” HAO was confused when she saw Ali opening the door.

Ali just laughed; she didn’t want to answer just yet.

“Good to see you Ali.” Engen hugged Ali and noticed that Ash was looking from upstairs. “Come here!” Whit ran towards her and hugged her tightly. “My brick wall!” She kissed her cheek.

“Whit, she knows.” That was the only thing Ash said and Whit knew. Only one thing was kept as this big dark secret and Ash didn’t have to say anything else.

Whit closed her eyes and shook her head. She looked at Ash and embraced her in another hug.

“Hey, you two coming?” HAO yelled from downstairs as she was taking a bowl to put all that chips inside.

Ash and Whit made their way downstairs when the doorbell rang again. This time Whit opened the door. It was Heath, Syd and O’Hara.

“Fuck! We didn’t come before Whit and HAO!” Kelley yelled jumping up and down.

“Come in!” Whit closed the door behind them and gestured them that Ash is in the kitchen with Ali and HAO.

“Ashhhhhh!” O’Hara ran up to her and practically jumped on her.”I missed you so much!”

“Missed you too monkey!” Ash hugged her and Syd handed Ali the ice cream and the champagne.

“I had to drive all the way here with these two kids. I need a drink!” Syd sat down and Ali gave her a beer. She looked at Whit who quickly looked away when she noticed Ali’s look.

_I should probably ask Engen, she might know something.._

Soon enough, they made their way upstairs, to another living room that had a huge TV and a mini bar. Ash and Kelley turned on the TV and put a video game in her PS4. They looked like someone just handed them a million dollars.

“I am going to beat yo ass right now!” Kelley punched Ash playfully and Ash punched back.“You wish!”

_Maybe now is the right time…_

“Whit, can you come with me for a second, I need to talk to you.” Ali got up and opened the balcony door. Ash and Whit immediately looked at each other and after Ash gave Whit the nod of permission, she walked outside.

She cleared her throat looking at the floor.”What’s up Kriegs?” She already knew what was up, just didn’t know how to start the conversation.

“I wanted to ask you if you knew something about a girl..”

Whit walked over to the fence and leaned on it looking at the distance. “Maddie.” She looked down and clenched her jaw.

“You know?” Ali looked at Whit with confusion all over her face. “I thought no one knew..”

“I was there.” Whit turned her head to Ali, still looking at the ground.

Ali approached her and listened carefully.

“It was July 11th 2012\. Maddie came here a few days earlier and she wanted to go to the beach so bad. Since we didn’t have practice that day, we took her to the beach..” She stopped for a second and sighed heavily.”She was playing with another boy, Chris; he lives a few houses from here. Ash and I.. We turned away for just a split second..And she was gone..No one saw anything that could be worth looking into. And she was the only one who was taken. From all those children!” Whit punched the chair and quickly calmed down before Ash heard. “We searched for 5 days. Five fucking days and not a single lead. The investigation was up and running for almost 6 months. Some people came to the police and described a man with a child but every time it was a different description. After two years they declared her dead.” She rubbed her face.”We buried an empty coffin.”

As soon as she turned around, she saw Ash standing at the balcony door. Ali wiped her tears and Ash approached them. She looked at Whit first and hugged her.”Thank you for doing this.”

“It’s the least I could do.” Whit broke the hug and they both looked at Ali who was looking in the distance, tears streaming down her face.

“Come here.” Ash walked to Ali with the open arms and Ali buried her face in Ash’s neck. Soon enough, other girls came to the balcony to see what is taking Ash so long. They walked out on Ash kissing Ali’s forehead and seeing how red Ali’s eyes were, they knew something was wrong.

“Yo, who died?” Kelley spat out without thinking. Ash raised her brows and looked at Whit who gave Kelley a warning look.

“Tell them.” Ash said, still holding Ali in her arms.

“Ash..” Whit shook her head.”Are you sure?”

“Yeah.Tell them.” She ran her hands through her hair and looked at Whit once again.

“Tell us what?” Syd spoke up before anyone had a chance.”What happened?”

All the girls stood beside Syd and waited for Whit to speak up.

“Well..It’s about Ash’s sister.”Whit scratched the back of her neck, not wanting to talk about it in front of Ash.

“Go ahead.” Ash encouraged her.

“She was abducted 6 years ago from that beach down there.” She pointed to the beach in front of the balcony.”After 2-3 years of searching for her the police declared her dead. Her grave is empty, but..She is nowhere to be found. Like she never existed.” Whit finished there. She thought that talking about it too much would be devastating for Ash.

Girls stood there in shock. What could they feel? How could they react?

Heath was the first to come up to Ash and hug her. After her all of the girls decided to join.

“It’s okay guys. I learned to live with it and we should just have fun.” Ash tried to light up the mood.

“We are really sorry.” Kelley spoke up for all the girls and they nodded.

Whit made her way into the house and everybody else followed. Soon enough, they “forgot” about it and by the time they ordered pizza, they were all drunk. Ash sneaked by Tobin who was discussing with Kelley something about pandas and she took Ali’s hand and pulled her towards the bedroom.

“What are you doing? They will see us! Plus we are a bit tipsy!” Saying that, she tripped three times.

“That’s why we’re hiding!” Ash slammed with the bedroom door and they both giggled.

“Hey, where are Ash and Kriegs?” Syd asked while Whit poured her another glass of champagne.

“I don’t wanna know. Those two have some weird connection.” Kelley said, focusing on the chips that fell on her right leg. She tried to throw it back in her mouth with her leg. When she failed, she decided to call for them.

“Ashhh, come back here! You should be with us, not-“

At that moment, Ash and Ali joined them, hickeys all over their necks, their hair was messy and they were pretty out of breath.

“Not doing Ali.” Kelley finished her sentence and jumped in excitement. “I knew it! You two are doing each other!”

Syd, Heath and HAO just observed the situation since they were too drunk to process what just happened.

“No! I was..I was trying to..” Ash tried to explain.

“Yeah, and she needed help so I helped.” Ali continued.

“Riiight. Guys, tell me you didn’t demolish Ash’s room.” Whit sent them a warning look.

“No..No, just my phone and well.. that’s it.” Ash smiled like she just did something good.

Whit approached them and inspected Ali. She narrowed her brows and turned to Ash.”You should go easy next time, she is a human being.” Ash punched her playfully and Ali ran to the bathroom to see what Ash did.

At that moment, Heath turned on the TV and the news just started. “Guys..” She turned the volume up and suddenly everyone was looking at it.

_“BREAKING NEWS: Florida’s girl Madison Harris was reported seen by a local family outside Houston? Stay with us for more information about this heartbreaking story that made the world cry.”_


	8. ME AND MY BROKEN HEART

“ _Since the closing of the investigation in 2012 many assumptions were made about the location of the abductor and the little girl. Finally a solid lead was given to the police by a family outside Houston. This is the man that they saw. If you have any information, please contact Houston Police Department_. _”_ Picture appeared in the right corner of the screen. Whit started walking toward Ash with a warning look. “Ash, don’t!”

 They both recognized him. Both of them saw him that day. He walked past them and placed his towel near the place where the kids were playing which wasn’t suspicious then since the beach was crowded.

“No. No, no, no. This is not happening. Not now!” Ash shook her head and picked her phone up.

“Who are you calling?” Whit grabbed her hand so that she can’t dial.

“I’m calling the police! Give me that!” She grabbed the phone back and ran downstairs.

When Ali got back, they were all sitting on the couch looking at each other. She thought that it was some kind of trick since Whit and Ash weren’t with them anymore.

“Okay guys, quit playin. Where are Whit and Ash?” Ali laughed like she knew what was going on. Tobin pointed at the TV in front of them and Ali’s heart stopped. “Wh-Are you serious?” She couldn’t believe that someone actually saw her.

 “Well it’s on the news so yeah..” Syd got up and turned to Ali.”We should probably go. I will talk to you tomorrow and I hope you will have some kind of answer by then.” She hugged her and the rest of the girls followed. Ali made sure to see them out before putting on her shoes and heading out.

Ali dialed Whit’s number and she immediately picked up. “Engen, where are you?”

“We are heading to the police station in Houston. They said they can’t discuss it over the phone so we had to go. Do you want us to pick you up?” Whit was searching for something in her bag.

“No, it’s fine. I will catch up to you.” Ali sat in her car and drove away.

After some time, she saw Ash’s car in front so she signaled them that she was right behind. They arrived at Houston just before the sunrise.

 

The sound of people talking and running around the place was the only thing you could hear in this police station. That brought back so much bad memories for Ash, she went back to that day..

“Ash? You okay?” Whit shook her shoulder and she jumped.

“Yeah. Yeah, let’s go.” They stopped the first person who passed by them and it was Sergeant William Peters. “Excuse me! Sir! We are here; we talked over the phone about Madison Harris.” Whit was the one doing the talking since Ash couldn’t.

 “Right this way, please!” He guided them to interrogation room. Ashlyn was impatient.

“Where is she?!” She looked all over the room. “Where is the girl?”

“We don’t have the girl. She was reported seen outside Houston by a German family that moved there a couple of years ago. They said that she had long blonde hair, blue eyes and was about 11 years old.” Sergeant stated.

“What do you mean?! We came all this way and you have nothing?!” Ash was losing her patience, if she even had any left.

Ali told Whit to get Ash out so she could talk with sergeant on her own.

“Sergeant, could you maybe give us the address of that German family? We just want to talk to them.” Ali was given a note with the address. “You didn’t get this from me. Their last name is Heinrich.” He walked away and Ali quickly ran to find Ash and Whit.

“I got it! I have the address!” Ali pulled them out of the police station and jumped into Ash’s car. They drove to this small house near the lake and Ash quickly ran to the door which made Ali and Whit run after her. She knocked on the door until this younger women opened.

“Hey! I mean hello! We just came from the police station and they’ve told us that you have some information about a little girl that you saw here with this man.” Ash showed her the picture that she saved on her phone.

The woman looked terrified. “Ich verstehe dich nicht.”

“What?” Ash turned to Ali since she was the only one here who knew German.

“She said that she doesn’t understand you.” Ali took Ash’s phone.”Let me.” She approached the woman and showed her the picture once again. “Hast du diesen Mann gesehen?“

The woman nodded. She gestured them to come inside and Ali thanked her.

“What did she say? She recognized him?” Ash pulled Ali back and Ali nodded.

The woman started to explain to Ali what she saw and her husband joined them after a while.

“She said that he approached them and asked if they had any gas to spare. He was hiding that little girl behind his back but she was peeking the whole time. She says that she had bright blue eyes but that is all she could see because the man yelled at her. Something in German. And after that, she looked at the ground the whole time. They gave them enough gas to get to the San Antonio and he headed in that direction.” Ali explained to Whit and Ash.

“San Antonio?! He is going to Mexico..” Ash immediately thought about the worst possible outcome.”Ask her if the girl said anything.”

“Hat sie etwas gesagt?” Ali asked them and this time the husband spoke up.

He knew a little bit of English so he decided to explain this one.

“Since she was hidden from us it was a bit hard to hear what she said, but I recognized it because I was singing that to my kids when they would go to sleep.”

“Twinkle twinkle little star?” Ash covered her mouth on the verge of crying.

He nodded and continued. “I don’t know if this is relevant or not, but she was holding a broken bracelet.”

“Was it purple?” Ash grabbed Ali’s hand and squeezed it.

“Yes. It had a little shark on it.”

Ash felt tears rolling down her face. It was her sister after all. “My baby girl..” She got up and left the house. The sky was filled with shiny and bright start and she just sat in the middle of nowhere.

_I will find you baby. I always do.._

Ali and Whit thanked the family and left the house only to see Ash on the ground, looking at the sky and holding her golden necklace.

Ali went to get her in the car but Whit stopped her. “Don’t.. She will join us when she’s done.”

Whit knew about that ritual Ash had. She does it on every anniversary of Maddie’s death.

They sat in the car and waited. After 10 minutes Ash sat in the back and didn’t say a word throughout the whole ride home. They stopped at the police station and Ali decided that it would be the best if Whit took her car so that Ali would be the one to drive Ash home. Whit agreed because she knew how much Ash needs Ali right now.

Ali waved Whit goodbye and they drove away. Ash fell asleep in the middle of the ride and Ali slowed down. She didn’t want to wake her up and put her through more of this nightmare.


End file.
